It’s not the prettiest soup in the world, but this cauliflower soup was a surprise hit with my family.
Recently I wrote that most of the soups I make are one-pot meals. But after reading research that says people who begin a meal with a light vegetable soup consume fewer calories than those who don’t, I started thinking about making more starter course soups. I had a cauliflower in the fridge and a meal that needed more vegetables in it, so I whipped up this creamy-tasting soup.
Frankly, I can’t even remember what I served with this because the soup was the star of the meal. I had worried that E wouldn’t like something so simple and basic–roasted cauliflower allowed to shine on its own without lots of seasonings–but she devoured it. I’d also been concerned that the truffle oil, which gives the soup a rich, woodsy taste, might not be to her liking, but obviously I was wrong. From now on, Roasted Cauliflower Soup will be on the menu regularly.
Roasted Cauliflower Soup
I used a Vitamix to get this silky smooth, but a regular blender might also work. Be careful not to burn yourself opening and pouring from the blender because the mixture can be super-heated.
Ingredients
- 1 cauliflower (I used an orange one)
- 1 onion, cut into wedges
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 4 cups fat-free vegetable broth
- 1 large potato, peeled and cubed
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 4 drops truffle oil (optional, but good)
- Smoked Spanish paprika, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400. Cut the cauliflower into florets and place them into a large baking dish covered with parchment paper or silicone baking sheet. Lightly spray the top of the cauliflower with oil in a mister (you can skip the oil if you like, but watch carefully for burning). Bake for 20 minutes. Sprinkle the onion wedges and garlic on top of the cauliflower, spray lightly with olive oil, and return to the oven. Cook for 20-25 more minutes, stirring once halfway through.
- While the vegetables are roasting, heat the vegetable broth and add the chopped potato. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat. Cook covered on very low until cauliflower is ready.
- Add the cauliflower mixture to the broth. Puree it, in batches, in the blender until very smooth. Return it to the pot and add the nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes. Just before serving, stir in a few drops of truffle oil, if desired. Ladle into bowls and serve, sprinkled with smoked Spanish paprika.
Preparation time: 10 minute(s) | Cooking time: 50 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 4
Makes 4 large servings. Per serving, without oil spray: 45 Calories (kcal); trace Total Fat; (5% calories from fat); 2g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 11mg Sodium; 2g Fiber.
Holler at Tinned Tomatoes and Lisa at Lisa’s Kitchen are hosting a monthly blogging event called No Croutons Required. This month’s theme is one that I can really get behind–vegetarian soup! I’m sending in this soup as my entry, which, now that I think about it, would taste great with croutons.
Rita
February 10, 2012 at 1:42 pmI’ve never ever roasted cauliflower. Never even thought of it. This is a definite for tomorrow, thanks!
Lester Sukenik
April 20, 2012 at 12:39 pmSusan,
Love your blog and web site. I’ve tried this recipe for roasted cauliflower soap and I’m hooked! I’m somewhat new to cooking and need help to keep me on course for my vegan lifestyle. I’ve changed this recipe by adding more potatoes before processing and then I added some diced potatoes (cooked) with some mushrooms and chopped spinach that I have prepared. Makes a nice smooth soup with some chunks and some green veggies for additional antioxidants. I also add some steamed broccoli.
Thanks for a great recipe! / Les
Sharon
June 22, 2012 at 9:54 pmThis was really good. It has the texture of a thinned cream of wheat or cornmeal mush (both of which are comfort foods from my childhood). The smoked paprika and nutmeg added nice flavor. I’ll make this again for sure, and will pass along the recipe to others (with links to this site!) who are interested in my ‘Eat to Live” eating.
I didn’t have the truffle oil but would like to try that next time. I’ve never purchased it, so would like some advice — for those of you who have used it, do you prefer black or white truffle oil and what is the difference?
annabee
June 27, 2012 at 1:41 amHi Susan, I think I found your site through a board on Pinterest, I am making a board called Vegan Cooking.
Of recent times, lots of cooking challenges in my family: 1 x vegan, 1x coeliac, also now with food intolerances.
I love that you have a Save Your Recipe feature. Thankyou for that.
I look forward to making more of your recipes, and adapting some of them for the coeliac/intolerant person (me!)
Kind regards
Ann
Alex
October 5, 2012 at 5:43 pmThanks for the great recipe! It came out very smooth and creamy with a very good flavor. Everyone had seconds!
Next time I make this, I think I will use slightly less veggie broth to make it a bit thicker. I added some chipotle chili pepper and it worked very well!
ruthie
October 8, 2012 at 8:16 ammade this yesterday………….yum! as always………….thanks!
Radhika Sarohia
December 7, 2012 at 7:59 pmMade a quick microwave/stovetop version of this today, was good but I added way too much nutmeg so gotta watch that next time haha
Brenda
December 30, 2012 at 11:45 amI made this in response to the cold front that just blew through New Orleans (brrr), and it really hit the spot! I happened to have a white cauliflower and sweet potatoes on hand, so that’s what I used. I didn’t have the truffle oil, but it still turned out delicious. The flavor is so complex for such a simple soup. Thanks for a great soup recipe!
Christine
March 9, 2013 at 7:17 amI bet this soup would be great with a yam and madras curry tossed in!
Joyce
July 22, 2013 at 7:05 amThank you! I make a similar soup with the following variations: I chop up a yellow pepper and add it to the other vegetables, which I roast all together mixed with 2 teaspoons of olive oil. I also add turmeric to the broth for flavor and color. I never see orange cauliflower, but the above additions give white cauliflower soup a nice color.
Claudia
November 4, 2013 at 5:58 pmHi Susan,
when you say 1 cauliflower.. what size was it more or less? You know, some are really big and others are tiny and can be around 500 grams. So it’s a bit hard for me to get an idea of the proportions between the various ingredients without this piece of information. (also, I need it for the caloric count)
let me know 🙂
Susan Voisin
November 4, 2013 at 6:50 pmI would say it was between medium and large. Not small and not gargantuan. Sorry not to be more specific–next time I will weigh it!
Janice
November 4, 2013 at 6:33 pmHave you tried it with a sweet potato? I don’t use “white”
anything and wondered if it changes the flavor much. Maybe even better, it would increase the fiber.
Susan Voisin
November 4, 2013 at 6:52 pmIt would definitely add sweetness, which might be okay, though I’m not sure I would like the sweetness with the woodsy truffle flavor, so you might leave out the truffle oil.
pat
December 22, 2013 at 11:12 pmI have trouble with your website. Sometimes I can’t get it to go back when I click on the back button. I’ll be reading a recipe and see something else on that page that interests me and then when I want to go back to that page, it refuses to go back and worse still if I go to the main page and look for the recipe, like for example the beet and orange salad, if I go to the salad listing, that is not listed. I had to go outside the site and do a new google search to bring it up. This has happened a lot on this site. I guess it is hard to keep all the bugs out of a website.
I wandered onto your site today as I am about to embark on Joel Fuhrman’s eat to live so I needed some new recipes. I am thrilled with all the choices. I thought I’d just be eating raw lettuce with nothing on it for the rest of my life. Thanks so much for all your creativity and testing of recipes. I am particularly interested in the ones that your daughter likes as I’d bet she’s not so easy to please.
Asa
February 13, 2014 at 5:58 pmLovely! Such a simple way to make the cauliflower sing. My soup was a little bit low on acidity at the end, so I added a hint of lemon juice.
MoJo
February 14, 2014 at 10:19 amI have to tell you that I recently made the Crown Roast Cauliflower. It could very well have been my elementary kitchen skills that botched it, but it was not very appealing to me or my family. Rather than have it go to waste, I modified this Roasted Cauliflower Soup recipe to use the cauliflower. To my surprise, it turned out better than I could have imagined! Not quite the same color, but the taste was divine. I love your site. Thanks for posting easy vegan recipes for those of us who are culinary challenged!
jem
February 8, 2015 at 10:07 amJust thinking, because I was browsing the comments and someone had added cheese, Is Daiya cheese, or any other non-dairy cheese, good in soups? I’ve never tried doing that. Thanks. LOVE this soup!
Jenny
August 17, 2018 at 7:37 pmHi, I noticed nobody has mentioned skipping the onion and garlic. Are they important to the roasting process and final taste?
I must skip these due to allergies. Do you have any soups that don’t rely on garlic/onions/leeks etc (a.k.a.alliums) very much?
Kirsten
October 25, 2018 at 8:59 pmSusan – you’re a genius. I am sick and this soup fee1s so amazing on my throat. I swapped ginger for gar1ic (a1ways do), a 1eek for the onion (again, a1ways) and added two “mature” carrots. I a1so added some cayenne because I read it was good for strep throat. And it is amazing, and orangy and pretty…I just had to post a comment. I can’t begin to te11 you how much better I fee1…even a1most good! I wi11 probab1y eat the entire pot. An o1die but a goodie and just what the doctor ordered. thank you!